AFRICAN-AMERICAN MAGAZINE PUBLISHER FOLDS

NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- Vanguarde Media, publisher of the African-American magazines Savoy, Heart & Soul and Honey, is ceasing publication immediately and

will file for bankruptcy, according to the company.

The December-January issues of the magazines, which all came out 10 times a year, will be the last.

70 staffers affected
The move affects around 70 staffers, a spokeswoman said. The staff was informed of the news at a 4 p.m. meeting today.

In a brief statement, Vanguarde's chairman-CEO, Keith Clinkscales, said that "recent efforts at securing funding proved unsuccessful, and we are no longer able to sustain operations." A spokeswoman said Mr. Clinkscales was not available to comment.

Financing ends
A statement from New York-based financial player Provender Capital LLC said Provender "had provided the primary financial support to the company" but noted its "plan for growth required additional financing." The statement said the environment for securing additional financing was "difficult."

Last ditch efforts
Earlier this year, Vanguarde announced it would receive an unspecified investment from ZelnickMedia, and that that company's founder, ex-BMG Entertainment CEO Strauss Zelnick, would sit on Vanguarde's board. But Mr. Zelnick exited his board position last month, an insider said. Mr. Zelnick was not immediately available for comment.

According to insiders, last year Vanguarde posted a loss of between $3 million and $6 millions on revenues slightly under $25 million. A spokeswoman said she could not comment on the company's financials.

Started in 1999
Vanguarde was started by Mr. Clinkscales in 1999, when he left his post as president-CEO of Vibe/Spin Ventures to launch his own company.

For the first 10 months of the year, according to Publishers Information Bureau, Heart & Soul's ad pages were up 39.9% to 421.6; Honey's rose 9.0% to 500.9, and Savoy's rose 18.1% to 454.5. Circulation for the largest title, Honey, was 419,621 for the first six months of the year.